Best Baby Book on the Market

Decent baby books are hard to find - they're either cheap or too cutesy - so when Matt and Marina had us over for dinner the other night and I saw their baby's book, I was shocked.  Modern, classy, and well made.    I never would have thought it were possible!

Being the planner that I am, I immediately ordered one from its creator: Edna Mae Baby.  Like my previous Etsy transaction, Kobie from Edna Mae provided amazing customer service, right down to allowing me to change my order TWICE after I paid/finalized everything.  (I'm indecisive lately.)

Her baby books all come with coordinating fabric covers and pages in a nice three-ring style.  I added the Preggers Pack, which was 18 pages of additional information about the pregnancy (baby bump photos, trimester reflections...).  It's basically an amazing scapbook with a guide as to what goes on each page.  And because it's in a three ring binder, it's easy to organize.

I've already started filling out pages about the first trimester and how Yaniv and I met.  I even added stickies on the pages where Yaniv can go back and add his thoughts.  I guess it's a little slow right now as there isn't too much baby before the baby is born, but I'm trying to get some of it out of the way so I can keep up with it.  Everyone says baby books are never finished, but I'm committed to finishing mine/hers!

  

Otherwise, life is slow.  Yaniv turned 29 on Sunday, so we drove to Austin to celebrate.  We kayaked (he did all the work) and saw a roller derby match (thanks Jonathan!).  The baby is continuing to grow, and as someone commented today, I'm finally looking like I'm gaining weight.  We'll post updated pictures of the bump Friday!

22 Weeks! That's 4 months left!!!

As we took the 5 month photo of my baby bump, Yaniv deftly asked, "Does it feel strange having that huge bump on you?"  My response was something along the lines of, "....." and a dirty look. 

I still think people at the gym assume I eat too much.

Today, I spent a few hours creating the cutest child's chair out of some "junk" the people who owned our house before us left behind in the attic.  The chair was a little breat up, but I painted it a lovely shade of watermelon and added a cute bird decal Modern Decals included as a bonus in our order. 

Not a lot else to report.  The baby is moving, but not enough to outsiders to feel yet.  I've started the baby book, which I will dedicate an entire blog post to because it is so perfectly perfect (thanks to Marina for the reference).  

...and that's all (for now) folks!

How to Hang a Wall Decal and Survive

First, let me start this by saying there would be no decal on the wall if it weren't for my fabulous, tall, and patient husband; he did at least 90% of the work.

Hanging a wall decal is fun, if by fun you mean really rewarding after you drive yourself crazy for an hour.  However, it was far easier than painting the whole room, and it added some much needed whimsy.  As you can see, before the wall was just a basic boring beige.

The whole process involved positioning the sticker on the wall, peeling off the backing, and sticking the decal in place.  Pretty simple - aside from the height of the decal I chose. Once Yaniv got the trunk placed, we worked together to put the leaves and smaller elements on the wall according to the diagram.  It is pretty amazing how much the vinyl looks like it is painted on the wall.

    

The final product makes the room feel much happier.  Yes, I wish it were 1 foot to the right, but I don't think I'll notice on a daily basis.  My favorite part is the accidentally perfect coordination of the tree to the tree blanket and the birds to the bird pillows!  We're such nature lovers!

On a final note, I'd like to thank Modern Decals for their great customer support and fast shipping!  If you've ever considered using a wall decal, I strongly suggest you check out their Etsy store, http://www.etsy.com/shop/ModernDecals.

Starting the Nursery

In the typical American style of having things we don't need, we are making a nursery for the baby.  The only things I can say in my defense are that we are not painting the walls and we only bought a crib, a glider, and some accessories.  No fancy changing table, no brand new dresser for baby - just re-purposing the old fashioned way.

However, because it is by definition a nursery, we wanted to make it a little cute without putting in the permanent effort of paint.  As a compromise, I found a great shop on Etsy.com that sells vinyl wall decals; you put them up on the wall and they look like they were painted on, last indefinitely, and peel off easily when you are done.

Their website is http://www.etsy.com/shop/ModernDecals, and they have great customer service.  As I was agonizing over which colors to choose, they actually offered to do a photo mock-up of the decal on the wall.  I just had to send a straight on photo of the room so they could Photoshop in the decal.

This is the one we're going with, minus all the color option squares on the wall above the crib.  I think it adds a bit of fun and whimsy to a wall of dark furniture and reflects the motif of the crib blanket and bird pillows (and yes, I know not to leave the blanket in the crib with the baby).  Once it's all done, I'll try to post a comparison of the mock-up and final product.

If anyone has experience with wall decals, PLEASE let me know.  Although the videos make it seem easy enough, I'm a little terrified of putting it up because it's huge - 72" tall! 

Baby Registry - Check

I like to plan and get everything squared away in record time - maybe that's the side of me that should have been an accountant like my mom.  When it comes to starting a new family, that trait doesn't diminish in the least.  I held off on shopping for the baby before we knew the sex because there was no doubt in my mind that I would have everything planned and set up before we were even out of the first trimester.  So I waited patiently. 

But... apparently one week is the period of time in which we can talk to two great sets of parents (thanks to the McCorveys & Graysons), gather useful information and tips, order our baby furniture and bedding, and then compile a registry that really seems to reflect us.  Phew!

Here are the links to the registries for those of you who like to jump into them early and pick the best stuff (like I always do).  Or just for curiosity seekers who want to know what we registered for*.  I think I would define our proposed parenting style as "keep it simple, and borrow everything else."



*You may notice there are no cute clothing items on the registries.  There is just so much out there, it's too hard to decide.  We figured we would leave that decision open-ended.  If you see something super cute, don't feel stifled, but please include a gift receipt in case it doesn't fit.